Cuellar v. Sw. Gen. Emergency Physicians, PLLC — Aug. 2016 (Summary)

RETALIATION

Cuellar v. Sw. Gen. Emergency Physicians, P.L.L.C.
No. 15-51078 (5th Cir. Aug. 4, 2016)

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed the district court’s decision to grant defendant physician group’s motion to dismiss plaintiff nurse practitioner’s retaliation claim.

The nurse practitioner, an employee of the physician group, filed a claim against the group alleging sexual harassment and retaliation.  The nurse practitioner alleged that she was terminated after she reported that her supervisor promised to “spank her if she misbehaved.”  The district court granted the physician group’s motion to dismiss the sexual harassment and retaliation claim, and the nurse practitioner appealed the ruling solely on the retaliation claim.

The physician group argued that the nurse practitioner’s retaliation claim should be dismissed because there was no viable sexual harassment claim.  The appeals court held that the nurse practitioner’s retaliation claim does not depend on the viability of her sexual harassment claim, and ruled that since there was enough information in her complaint to support a retaliation claim, the district court’s grant of the physician group’s motion to dismiss was reversed.